Prog-Rock Essentials

[LuminousAether]

Progressive rock is a diverse and hard to define genre, with its fair share of crap and excellence. Here are the albums I find to be essential:

King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)
King Crimson - Red (1974)
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here (1975)
Pink Floyd - Animals (1977)
Os Mutantes - A e o Z (1973)
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick (1972)
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound (1973)
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - Of Natural History (2004)
Porcupine Tree - Signify (1996)
Anekdoten - Nucleus (1995)

There's 10. Now add to the list.

 

[unknown]

Transatlantic - Bridge Across Forever
Caravan - In the land of grey and pink

those are my humbly opinionated options

btw, you kick ass for having Sleepytime Gorilla Museum in your list

 

[biggsy]

Don't forget In Absentia by Pocrupine Tree. Personally one of my favourite albums of all time.

 

[LuminousAether]

In Absentia is not one of my favorite Porcupine Tree albums. In fact, I'd say it's my least favorite.

 

[biggsy]

Wow really? I love it! Trains is probably in my top 3 favourite songs ever!

 

[unknown]

there's a couple of decent songs on In Absentia, but it's not their best. It's a good entry level PT cd

 

[Chromatose]

Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin!
Museo Rosenbach - Zarathustra
Jan Dukes de Grey - Mice and Rats In The Loft
Comus - First Utterance

and besides the aforementioned crimso albums,
King Crimson - The Power To Believe , is a modern day classic

 

[LuminousAether]

Well, I got that Caravan album and the Transatlantic album. I love the first, but the second isn't too impressive. I looked them up and I guess it's a super group of members of Dream Theater, Marillion, Spock's Beard, and The Flower Kings. I don't really care for those bands. Especially DT and TFK, which I don't like at all.

I've never heard those albums, Chromatose. I'll have to get them.

Although I have heard The Power to Believe and I disagree with you on it being a classic. It's got some great songs, but some not so great songs too. At least it's quite a bit better than Thrak.

 

[ResistExistence]

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - Of Natural History
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Finnforest - Finnforest/Lahto Matkalle
Comus - First Utterance
Yes - Closer to the Edge
Tangerine Dream - Tangram
Brian Eno - Another Green World
Porcupine Tree - Sky Moves Sideways
Camel - The Snow Goose
Dream Theater - Awake (I'm sure some will disagree, but I find this to be an outstanding album)
David Sylvian - Secrets of the Beehive

 

[Verwuestung]

gonna go with a bit of unfamiliar stuff but however so extraordinary

Cressida - Cressida
Cressida - Asylum
Spring - Spring
Graphite - Chesnut Loke
Van Der Graaf Generator - H To He Who Am The Only One
Pink Floyd - More
Pink Floyd - Animals
Pink Floyd - Atom Heart Mother
Camel - Camel
Camel - Mirage
Camel - Moonmadness

 

[Neith]

How about some Riverside? I find them to be pretty good but couldn't recommend a particular album as I've only downloaded several tracks.

 

[کوڈانشی]

Caravan - In the land of grey and pink

ooh, one of my favourites. to this thread’s list i would add:

fairfield parlour: from home to home. this brilliant british band started off as a psychedelic group called kaleidoscope and also have a prog album prior to morphing into fairfield parlour: white–faced lady.

i would also like to mention a modern japanese prog band whose music i love: há–zá–má, particularly their “once upon a time” album from 1999. dreamy

 

[ResistExistence]

How about some Riverside? I find them to be pretty good but couldn't recommend a particular album as I've only downloaded several tracks.

Oh man, I can't believe I forgot about Riverside. EXCELLENT band. Out of Myself is a near prog masterpeice. Haven't heard much from Second Life Syndrome but I'll end up buying it sooner or later.

 

[Neith]

I have several tracks from both of those, all of which I really like. The title track from Second Life Syndrome is really good, as are the rest that I have, including 'Conceiving you' and 'After'

 

[unknown]

Well, I got that Caravan album and the Transatlantic album. I love the first, but the second isn't too impressive. I looked them up and I guess it's a super group of members of Dream Theater, Marillion, Spock's Beard, and The Flower Kings. I don't really care for those bands. Especially DT and TFK, which I don't like at all.

so I broke even haha

 

[ResistExistence]

I have several tracks from both of those, all of which I really like. The title track from Second Life Syndrome is really good, as are the rest that I have, including 'Conceiving you' and 'After'

I've only heard one track from Second Life Syndrome. If it's anything like 'Out of Myself', it should be great.

 

[Fractal_Mortality]

albums I would add to this list:

Yes - Relayer
King Crimson - In the Wake of Poseidon
Rush - 2112
Transatlantic - SMPTe

and I'd have to add a vote for King Crimson's "Power to Believe," as I think it may just be the bands greatest album (next to "In the Court" I suppose).

 

[LuminousAether]

I'd definitely put Close to the Edge over Relayer. The only post 70s KC album I think compares to In the Court or Red is Discipline.

 

[Fractal_Mortality]

Yes, but I wasn't trying to pit the albums against each other... I was simply stating that those I added were ones everyone should check out.

 

[Neith]

I've only heard one track from Second Life Syndrome. If it's anything like 'Out of Myself', it should be great.

Yeh they are pretty good, along the same lines as that. The song 'Second Life Syndrome' is even better, it's really good. Just download it or something